Let’s not repeat Colorado’s mistake. Even though our state Legislature and governor are paralyzed when it comes to tax reform, the Taxpayer Bill of Rights is not the answer.

According to the Maine Center for Economic Policy, TABOR has rendered Colorado’s funding effort of K-12 education system 49th nationally. Colorado is near the bottom of all states in terms of average elementary school class size. They are negotiating the sale of state parks in order to generate revenue and the program that vaccinates school children has been suspended.

If TABOR had been in effect in Maine for the past 10 years, we would face a total of $470 million in cuts to state services. That amount is equal to the state’s general fund portion of all of higher education, conservation, judicial, public safety, child welfare, mental health, environmental and veterans’ budgets combined.

Colorado citizens have had enough and just suspended TABOR for five years to try and rebuild their education systems and infrastructure. The sponsors of this bill have made Maine’s version even more restrictive than Colorado’s version.

Vote No on TABOR in November, and only vote for legislative and gubernatorial candidates who really want true tax reform. Continuing to shift the chairs on the Titanic has brought Maine the Palesky initiative and now a failed TABOR solution.

Dana Lee, Mechanic Falls